FARCE & STOCK
CHARACTERS
Zaya
FARCE
A comedy characterized by highly
improbable plot situations, exaggerated
characters, and often slapstick elements
are used for humorous effect.
 Aims to entertain the audience by means of unlikely, and
improbable situations, disguise and mistaken identity, verbal humour
of varying degrees of sophistication and a fast-paced plot whose
speed usually increases, culminating in an ending which often involves
an elaborate chase scene.
 Also characterized by physical humor
The Second Shepherds' Play
About a thief, Mak, who steals a sheep from three
shepherds. He and his wife, Gill, attempt to deceive
the shepherds by pretending the sheep is their son.
The shepherds are fooled at first. However, they later
discover Mak's deception and toss him on a blanket
as a punishment.
IS HE D E A D ?
B Y M A R K T WA I N
Focuses on a fictional version of the great French
painter Jean-Francois Millet as an impoverished
artist in Barbizon, France who, with the help of his
colleagues, stages his death in order to increase the
value of his paintings.
STOCK CHARACTER
a fictional character who is quickly recognized and
accepted by the reader or viewer and requiring no
development by the writer.
rely heavily on cultural types or names for their
personality, manner of speech, and other
characteristics
As You Like It & Twelfth Night by Shakespeare
Interfering father
The clever servant
The rival suitor
MORE…
 Old Comedy of Greek Drama: self-deceiving
braggart, and self-deprecating character. The
playwright Menander created stereotypical cooks,
merchants, farmers, soldiers and slave characters,
plus the "Fisherman, Peevish Man, Promiser,
Heiress, Priestess, False Accuser, Shipmaster,
Widow" and others.
IN ENGLISH THEATER
 Medieval romances: damsel in distress; contemptuous dwarf;
chivalrous, handsome young knight; wild man of the woods; and ugly
old man married to a younger girl.
 Nineteenth-century melodrama: noble hero, persecuted maiden,
aristocratic villain, stalwart sailor, faithful servant, bumbling sidekick
and aged parent.
MODERN STOCK CHARACTERS
 Westerns: cowboy hero, civilized rancher, noble lawman,
madam, prostitute-with-the-heart-of-gold, town drunkard,
settler wife, and a Native American.
 Female: Bad Girl/Rebel, Dumb Blonde, Hooker with a
Heart of Gold, Nurse, Tomboy, Widow